Project #47156 - political science 101

21 General Tutors Online

Research Paper Requirement for the Class: A Guide to Writing Your Paper

Term Paper.Â Given that in November, 2014 there is a mid-term election, choose any candidate orinitiativeofinteresttoyouthatwillbeontheballotforvoteinSantaBarbaraCounty. Then research and explore the campaign activities of your chosen subject. For the term paper, your assignment is to examine what you have discovered in terms of the scholarly research on election campaigns and analyze your topic in light of the various themes we cover in class, whether it be interest groups, political parties, elections, etc. While researching the scholarly literature, you are not necessarily looking for research about yourÂ particularcandidate or initiative, or the specific activity that you were exploring, but for what the research shows about campaigns and the political themes in general. For example, you might examine how campaigns use influence, or how they are funded, or the impacts of media coverage, or the role of public opinion on successful campaigns, etc.

In political science, thesis sentences like the question stems described below, are often the type ofÂ â€œcritical thinkingâ€Â questions that are explored in college textbooks, as well as those you saw in the midterm. These are the types of questions that political scientists examine and are the typesÂ of questions youâ€™ll want to think about in relation to writing your paper, tying your research toÂ the current political event.

In writing your research paper, you will need to put the topic you choose into context of the scholarly research on that topic.Â What does that mean? It means that youâ€™ll need to research and use scholarly journal articles in the social sciences and apply them to your topic. You may make use of newspaper articles or information from websites in order to find the current political coverage and information on your chosen topic, but then you must show evidence of your understanding of the issues by including at leastÂ fivecredible, reliable references to the scholarly research on the topic.

To clarify:Â Iâ€™m looking for a research paper in political science; in other words, usingÂ information you find on your particular issue, put it into context of the scholarly information written by political scientists and other experts. Commentary heard on Fox news or on AM radio are NOT scholarly, nor are articles you find inÂ TimeÂ orÂ Newsweek.Â Youâ€™ll have to research theÂ scholarly journals for articles that present research information on your issue.

B.Â Introducetheaspectyouâ€™dliketofurtherdiscussandanalyzealongwiththe integration of your research as well as textbook and in-class materials

C. Conclusion

Begin your search.Find current newspaper articles about the issue youâ€™ve chosen.Â You will also need to have at least fiveÂ credible,Â reliableÂ sources other than the newspaper articles and textbook.Â Think of key words or phrases to describe your topic and use them when you search for the following:

Select materials that are relevant to your topic. When searching, select journal articles or books rather than popular magazines such asÂ TimeÂ orÂ Newsweek. When selecting web sources, pay particular attention to where the information comes from; using criteria suchÂ as: Whoâ€™s the author? What are their credentials? Whoâ€™s sponsoring the page?Â Is the information reliable?Â Whoâ€™s the intended audience?

Take notes

Ã¯â€šÂ· Â Take notes from research that address the topics in your outline; include where the

information came from. For books, include: author(s), title, publisher, place and date of publication, page numbers to specific part of the book. For articles, include: author(s) of article, title of article, title of journal, volume, date, and page numbers.

Ã¯â€šÂ· Â Summarize and paraphrase what you read or use direct quotes. For each, you must provide a citation to the source of the idea.

Name of author or creator, if available. "Title of topic or article" (if given). Title of page (if named). Name of any institution or organization associated with the site. Latest update (if given). Access date .

Examples

"What Impact Does Money Have In The Initiative Process?" Initiative & Referendum Institute at the University of Southern California. University of Southern California. 2014. Retrieved 12 September 2014 http://www.iandrinstitute.org/Quick%20Fact%20-%20 Money.htm>.